Trading Statement

RNS Number : 5146Y

Deltex Medical Group PLC

08 July 2008

 

Deltex Medical Group plc

Pre-close update on the six months ended 30 June 2008

8 July 2008 - Deltex Medical Group plc ('Deltex Medical' or 'Company'), the UK's leading haemodynamic monitoring company, today announces an update on progress in the six months ended 30 June 2008.

Throughout the first half of 2008 the Company made substantial progress towards delivering its goal of establishing the use of its CardioQ-ODM™ system as a standard of care in the monitoring and management of patients undergoing surgery and in critical care. Around the world, more patients than ever before are benefiting from being treated using the CardioQ-ODM. As a result the Company expects sales for the six months ended 30 June 2008 to be in excess of £2.4 million and to be more than 25% higher than in the corresponding period in 2007 when sales were £1.9 million.

Comparing sales each quarter to the corresponding quarter in the preceding year, the Company has achieved 10 consecutive quarters of growth in global probe sales, underpinned by 14 consecutive quarters of growth in UK probe sales and eight in International probe sales. Quarterly group probe sales were over £1 million for the first time ever in the second quarter of 2008.

In the USA, the world's largest medical technology market, the Company entered the year with one hospital, a major hospital in Southern California, running a Deltex Medical implementation programme. By 30 June 2008 a further three hospitals in Southern California were in the early stages of implementation of the programme. Similar programmes are under active consideration in two other Southern Californian hospitals and in major hospitals in two large US cities. Growth in sales from these implementation projects is more likely to have a significant impact in the second half of the year than in the first half, due to the relatively high level of 'one-off' sales in the first half of the comparative period in 2007. A number of private healthcare providers have started to reimburse doctors (i.e. pay additional fees for clinician time) for using the CardioQ-ODM at levels which the Company considers sufficient incentive to encourage broader and deeper clinician uptake. The process for reimbursement by the publicly funded Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ('CMS') is underway and the Company is aware that first applications for reimbursement have been submitted.

In the Company's largest market, the UK, sales continued to grow steadily, with growth in sales of each of probes, monitors and maintenance contracts. Adoption of the CardioQ-ODM is near the top of the UK health innovation agenda. In April the NHS Centre for Evidence-based Purchasing published a highly positive report confirming CardioQ-ODM's ability to deliver better patient outcomes at lower cost. The NHS National Technology Adoption Hub is working with three hospitals to develop guidance for the NHS on how best to procure and implement CardioQ-ODM: it expects the procurement phase to be completed shortly and to start reporting on implementation in the coming months.

The Company is delivering strong growth in both monitor and probe sales in its International business, which is conducted mainly through distributors. The normal level of monthly probe orders from distributors in key territories is continuing to grow, with sales of probes in France substantially ahead of the prior period, and the Company has continued to enter selected new markets.

Nigel Keen, Deltex Medical's chairman, commented:

'Deltex Medical has increased the momentum driving growth in the UK and International markets and made substantial progress in positioning its US operations for significant and sustainable growth. Deltex Medical has created a clear advantage in a substantial new global market by providing proprietary technology that enables doctors to look after their patients better than ever before.'

  For further information, please contact:-

Deltex Medical Group plc                01243 774 837

Nigel Keen, Chairman                        [e-mail]

Andy Hill, Chief Executive                  [e-mail]

Ewan Phillips, Finance Director          [e-mail] 

Gavin Anderson & Company           0207 554 1400

Deborah Walter                                [e-mail]

Robert Speed                                   [e-mail]

Nominated Adviser & Broker

Charles Stanley Securities              020 7149 6000

Philip Davies                                     [e-mail] 

Russell Cook                                    [e-mail] 

Notes for Editors

Deltex Medical manufactures and markets the CardioQ-ODM™ monitor, which uses disposable ultra-sound probes inserted into the oesophagus to determine the amount of blood being pumped around the body - 'circulating blood volume'. Reduced circulating blood volume is known as hypovolaemia, which leads to insufficient oxygen being delivered to the organs. This causes medical complications including peripheral and major organ failure which can lead to death. Hypovolaemia, which is akin to severe dehydration, affects virtually every patient having surgery because of the combined effects of pre-operative starvation, the impact of the anaesthetic agents and trauma from the surgery itself. Using fluids and drugs, guided by the CardioQ-ODM, to optimise the amount of circulating blood significantly reduces post-operative complications allowing patients to make a faster, more complete recovery and return home earlier.

The CardioQ-ODM incorporates the Company's proprietary software and a small diameter, easy-to-use, minimally invasive, disposable oesophageal probe that is used for transmitting and receiving an ultra-sound signal. By using this technology, the CardioQ-ODM provides clinicians with the ability to haemodynamically optimise critically ill patients and those undergoing routine moderate to major surgery through the controlled administration of fluid and drugs. Haemodynamic optimisation has been scientifically proven to improve the speed and quality of patient recovery and reduce hospital stay.

There are already over 1,500 CardioQ-ODMs currently in use in hospitals worldwide and distribution arrangements are in place in over 30 countries. In addition, there are currently more than 100 clinical publications on the use of the CardioQ-ODM which have repeatedly:-

• Validated the results of the Monitor against known standards for measuring cardiac output, demonstrating that the technology works

• Proved that the CardioQ-ODM works in a wide range of surgical procedures

• Demonstrated that the Company's technology provides significant health and economic benefits by helping to reduce post-operative complications and length of hospital stays by an average of 30 to 40 per cent for a wide range of patients.

The SupraQ™ is an entirely non-invasive device which uses an ultrasound probe held at the base of the patient's neck to track the flow of blood in the aorta; it presents the same data as the CardioQ-ODM in a similar format and is used for taking snapshots or monitoring over short periods.

 

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